Tech

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Microsoft has acquired technology from Boston-based Talko, a mobile app for on-the-go business communications. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Talko will officially shut down in March 2016 and will be integrated into Microsoft’s Skype for Business.The software giant has bought the startup to beef up its Skype for Business services within Office 365. Microsoft’s Skype for Business is an enterprise-focused version of Skype communication platform that the company acquired in 2011. Skype for Business provides Office 365 users with an all-in-one communication solution.Talko was led by former Microsoft Chief Technical Officer and Chief Software ArchitectRay Ozzie. In January 2012, Ozzie started a new company called Cocomo, the name was later changed to Talko. The name Talko was named after Talkomatic, a popular group chat program Ozzie experienced while working on the PLATO system in the 1970s. The Talko team posted on their website: “Today we’re announcing that Talko’s been acquired by Microsoft to help fuel future innovation in Skype and Skype for Business.” And added this: “As part of the Skype team, we’ll leverage Talko’s technology and the many things we’ve learned during its design and development. We’ll strive to deliver the best of our product’s innovations far more broadly than on our current path.”Launched in September 2014 and based in Boston, Massachusetts, Talko (formerly known as Cocomo) enables simple conferencing communications for business users by combining voice and text messaging. Talko brings together talk, texting, and conferencing and it’s available on iOS and Android platforms.For Microsoft partners, the deal is big win for Microsoft Office 365 portfolio. Partners can now integrate Talko’s text, voice and video capabilities to enable streamlined communication.In addition, Talko investors also include Greylock Partners, Kapor Capital, and Andreessen Horowitz. Image credit: TechCrunch

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